Try something new in your dance classes this summer!
The title of this blog post is pretty self-explanatory! In the summer, many dance teachers may want to try something new in their dance classes. They may want to offer a different experience for their dance students, fill extra time during dance camps or intensives, or simply shake up their usual routine to prevent burnout and boredom – for themselves and for their dance students!
In this blog post you’ll find some unique activities that you can add to your summer dance camps or classes. While many of these ideas can be adapted for use with dancers of all ages, they are designed with dancers age 7 and up in mind.
Incorporate dance history
Summer is a perfect time to include educational enrichment in your dance camps and classes. Dance history is one of my favorite areas to explore with students during the summer. There are many great dance books, educational resources, videos, and interactive activities that you can use to teach your students about dance history while having fun. Unique ideas for teaching dance history over the summer include:
- Book club: Invite your dancers to read a book about dance history and discuss it as a group, either during class or at a prescribed meeting time before or after. You might like these dance memoirs and biographies. (But be advised that some are not suited for all age groups. Check the content first to make sure it will work for your dance students!
- Become a choreographer: Assign each dancer a famous choreographer from history. Allow time for them to research their background, style, famous works, and impact on dance. Have each dancer give a presentation as if they were their assigned choreographer, telling the class about their life, answering questions, and teaching a short movement phrase that they made up, in their choreographer’s style.
- Moving dance history: In this blog post, you’ll find interactive dance history activities that help dancers explore aspects of ballet, jazz, and modern dance history in their own bodies.
Go back to basics
Summer is a great time to go back to the basics of dance technique, artistry, and well-being in your dance classes. Don’t be afraid to review important concepts, simplify exercises, or streamline your content to help reinforce the fundamentals. Dancers of all ages and skill levels can always benefit from time to review and refine! Read more in this blog posts: Why you can’t skip the fundamentals in dance training
Play dance games
If you follow my blog, you know I believe that play can be an important educational tool in the dance studio. Research indicates that students of all ages can learn through play, and play can help children can develop important social, cognitive, and emotional skills. I have found that incorporating play in the dance studio allows dancers to develop greater creativity, self-expression, collaboration skills, and performance quality, while also developing a deeper understanding of their dance technique. You can read more about the play in the dance studio in this blog post: Your Ultimate Guide to Play in the Dance Studio.
One of my favorite forms of play is educational dance games. Thoughtfully designed dance games can help dancers gain self-confidence, engage in new experiences, and meet new physical and mental challenges. Summer is the perfect time to incorporate dance games into your lesson plans. Many dance students are eager to try new things, have fun, and celebrate the season in their summer dance classes. I think that your dance students will love these summer-themed dance games!
Use gamification
If dance games aren’t your thing, you can still create a playful dance class experience through gamification. Gamification is defined as “the application of typical elements of game playing (e.g. point scoring, competition with others, rules of play) to other areas of activity.” You see gamification used as a marketing tool, as well as in education, workplace training development, and even healthcare and wellness. Gamification can be used in the dance studio, to help students learn and improve their skills through play. In fact, it is likely that you have incorporated gamification into your dance classes without even realizing it! You can learn more about gamification and find examples of how to use it in your dance classes here: How to Use “Gamification” in Your Dance Classes”
Try self-assessment and progress tracking
Summer is a great time to help dancers take stock of their own strengths, progress, and goals for the future. You can include goal-setting, self-evaluation, and peer review and feedback as part of your summer camps and classes. Facilitate a goal-setting session at the beginning of your summer dance session, and ask dancers to track their progress through the season. Ask dancers to keep a journal of their strengths, growth areas, and feedback they receive through the summer. At the end of the session, have dancers complete a self-assessment form using video of themselves dancing. Note that this can be an empowering process for many dancers, but some may struggle to honestly assess their goals and progress. Dancers who struggle with perfectionism, anxiety, or who are particularly hard on themselves might need extra care and grace. The Holistic Dance Teacher Collection of Resources includes tools that can assist in these processes, including goal-setting worksheets and an evaluation guide that can be used by dance students for self-assessment (or by their teachers for grading or level placements).
Work on performance skills
You may not be preparing for a recital during the summer, but it is still a great time to help dancers work on their performance skills! Teaching performance quality, character development, musicality, and connection with the audience should be a year-long endeavor. You can teach repertory classes to help dancers pick up choreography, coach variations, hold a rhythm and musicality workshop, or play dance games (like the ones in this blog post) that help students practice performance skills. You will also find inspiration in this blog post: 5 ways to become a better dance performer.
Plan student choreography projects
Summer is a great time to help your dance students hone their creativity and develop their artistry through choreography projects! You can choose to work with them on a collaborative choreographic project, where they help you choose the music or costumes, and assist you in creating the concept, movement, and formations. If you take this approach, you might find the advice in this guest blog post that I authored for NDEO’s Dance Education Blog to be helpful! Another option is to let you dance students take the choreographic reigns entirely, creating their own dances either individually or in groups. The Holistic Dance Teacher Choreography Planner will guide you through a process for teaching students how to choreograph, while also keep them organized and on track! Let students work on their dances over the course of the entire summer camp or class term, then share either in a live showing or via video.
Watch videos and discuss
It is astounding to me how many dancers in training have never seen a professional dance production. I fully realize that not everyone has the financial or geographic access to live professional dance, so this is not meant to shame those who can’t make it to the theatre for a show. But there is so much great dance available on video – either through local libraries or on the internet – and it doesn’t seem like many dancers are taking full advantage of those resources. They may see clips of amazing turn sequences on social media or short routines performed on reality TV, but it doesn’t seem like many young dancers are engaging with evening-length concert works.
I believe it’s vital for young dancers to see what they are working toward. As dance educators, we can motivate and inspire our dance students by showing them videos of professional dance performances. We can also help deepen their understanding of dance technique, artistry, choreography, and production by analyzing and discussing these videos with them. You can find many great masterworks on YouTube, in the online archives of dance companies, or at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive. Video viewing is not a “break” from learning or a “time filler” – it can be a meaningful learning experience and valuable tool to help our dance students grow! The Holistic Guide to Analyzing Dance Performance will help you and your dance students get the most out of video viewing and discussion sessions.
Incorporate dance improvisation
There is nothing like dance improvisation in the summer! It offers an outlet for expression, a creative challenge, and a unique way to explore concepts related to dance technique – all while having fun. I’ve written extensively about dance improvisation in the past, so I’ll point you to this blog post: Your Ultimate Guide to Dance Improvisation. It will link you to resources, advice, and activities to help you incorporate improvisation into your summer dance classes or camps. You will also want to check out The Holistic Collection of Dance Improvisation Prompts and Activities!
Try a challenge element
Dancers who show up for the summer session are often looking for a challenge. They are passionate, dedicated students who know that there is no off season when it comes to dance! I always believe in teaching dance in an age and developmentally way, but I also know that working toward a challenge can be a good way to foster dancers’ resilience and persistence. Consider choosing one or two challenge elements – technical skills that are just slightly above the dancers’ current skill level. Use drills and progressions that break the new skill down and teach it safely. Watch your dancers thrive as they rise to the challenge! If you are looking for new dance technique skills to add to your summer dance camps or classes, check out The Dance Technique Skills Lists Bundle, or any of the individual skills lists for the dance styles that you teach.
What are your favorite ways to make summer dance camps and classes more fun? Please share in the comments!
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